Squidbeak Splatoon: Turf Wars and Other Battles
by namelesspenname
Summary: Ari has arrived in Inkopolis to participate in the biggest Turf War league! As he gets settled in, however, he finds himself involved in conflicts that extend far beyond the arena. Join him as he fights in Turf Wars, Ranked Battles, and beyond the borders of Inkopolis in his adventure! Rating is subject to change in future chapters.
1. Prologue, Chapter 1: New Squid in Town

Prologue

 ***** Captain, I am telling you, this is not a good sign! *****

"I understand your concern, Agent 3, but this is not a matter we can pursue yet!"

 ***** An Octarian army is amassing on our door, and we can't pursue it? What are we going to do? Wait for them to storm our city, and kill innocent Inklings? *****

"They haven't shown any signs of attacking Inkopolis yet. We can't be rash, and invite a war onto our doorsteps, bucko!"

 ***** DON'T CALL ME BUCKO! NOT WHILE YOU'RE IGNORING A BLATANT THREAT TO OUR CITY! *****

"Agent 3, many of our citizens regularly participate in Turf Wars, and we're always watching out for enemy movements. Our citizens will be ready for another invasion."

 ***** Captain, you know as well as I do that the Turf Wars that we participate in are nothing like real combat. No Respawn Points, no guarantee that you'll be back. Many of them are just going to rush in and get killed!*

"Should the Octarians mobilize, we'll be ready. There is nothing more we can do, Agent 3."

 ***** No, there is nothing you _want_ to do. Did imprisoning your friend make you soft, _captain_? *****

"Agent, we don't need to make this personal. For now, all we need to do-"

 ***** Forget it, old squid. We're done here. If the Squidbeak Splatoon won't do anything, _I_ will. I'm leaving Inkopolis. I won't be back until I find a solution to our problem. Farewell. Give my regards to Agents 1 and 2, and tell the team that I'll be gone for awhile.* _Click_

"Agent 3! You can't abandon the Splatoon like this! We need you here!"

"Agent 3, report! What is your status?"

"AGENT 3!"

 *****... *****

"Squidbeak Splatoon, this is Captain Cuttlefish. I am issuing a full broadcast to all acting agents. Agent 3 has jumped the shark. I repeat, Agent 3 has jumped the shark."

 ***** No... *****

 ***** He couldn't have! *****

"Agents, keep calm!"

 ***** What are we going to do without him? *****

"We're not going to continue operations without him. We'll find him."

 ***** Captain, what are our assignments? *****

"Agents 1 and 2, maintain cover in the city. We can't alarm anyone about this new development. Agents 4 and 5, I'm sending you two out to his last known location. Recon only, search for any sign of him. Do not engage any enemies you may see. All other agents, stand by. I'll issue you your assignments in regards to this manner when we have more information."

 ***** Understood. Agent 4, we're moving out now. *****

"May the Great Krakens protect him."

* * *

Chapter 1

Ari rested his head against the train window. _I need to get off this train._ He thought to himself, as he looked out the window. He knew he was heading to Inkopolis to get involved in a more competitive Turf War League, but he wasn't aware that he would have to take an 8 hour train ride on the way there. _My butt is killing me. And I can only stare at trees passing by for so long._ He sighed, and looked around the train again.

The Inkling girl across the way was still trying to covertly stare at him, but failing at it. _Her eyes might as well be boring holes through my head. And what's so weird about me anyway?_ His gaze returned to the window, and he got a quick glance at his reflection. _Oh. Right. Black hair. I've heard that it isn't very common in the city. Maybe that's why she keeps staring at me._ He turned back to the girl across the aisle. Her bright yellow hair was a little painful for him to look at, since he was used to blues and oranges from the local Turf Wars back home. _I'm starting to regret leaving Tentaville. Way too much time on this train already, and now I'm not sure if I'm a freak around here or not._ Ari resumed looking out the window.

"E-excuse me?" The Inkling girl asked. "Where did you get the ink color for your hair?"

Ari turned towards her. "Pardon?"

"Your hair color. Is that your natural color? Or do you have a new dye color?"

 _Yep. It was the hair._ "Natural color. It's what I've always had. Is it rare in Inkopolis?"

She nodded. "I don't think I've seen a color darker than navy blue for hair color. What's your name?"

He smiled. "I'm Ari. Ari Inklowe. What's yours?"

"Isabella McSquidish." She bounced a little in her seat. "I'm here for my first turf wars. What about you?"

"I'm one of the top players back home. I've decided to move to Inkopolis to get involved in a bigger league." He pulled out his Player card. "Thankfully, we use the same level system, so everything transfers over."

"I thought there was only the Experience System. There are other leveling systems?" Isabella asked.

Ari nodded. "Yep. Inkopolis actually has two, as a matter of fact. There's the Experience system you determines how familiar you are with Turf Wars, and the weapons you can wield. Then there's also a Ranking system for more skilled players that determines what level of skill they have. Those are the only ones that Inkopolis tracks, so we track those as our main ones too."

"And there are others?"

"Some leagues measure Kill/Death ratios, some measure total turf inked, some measure tournaments won. I've even heard of a few smaller leagues that don't use the Ranking system, thanks to how few people there actually are. Tentaville had a decent amount of people, so we measured it."

Isabella grinned. "Well then? What's your level and rank?"

"Level 20. B Rank, but that's because I don't care for Ranked battles. Takes some of the fun out of it for me."

"Is B Rank good?"

Ari shrugged. "Ranking starts at C minus, and goes all the way up to S plus. The B category is above the C category, so I'm winning more than I'm losing at the very least."

The train started to slow down. "Ladies and Gentlemen, please stay in your seats as we approach Inkopolis. Thank you for taking the Inkopolis Express Rail."

"We're almost there. Finally." Ari stretched in his seat. "I cannot imagine how this train ride took 8 hours."

Within a few minutes, the train slowed down to a stop. "Well, it was nice talking to you Ari." Isabella stood up. "Good luck in the Turf Wars!" She picked up her small backpack, and bounded off for the doors.

Ari grabbed his rolling suitcase from the top shelf. _First things first, I need to find the apartment complex that I'm staying at. I really should have put my map on the top of my stuff..._ Regardless, he at least knew the name, and that should help him find the place. The train doors opened, and Ari walked out into the brightly lit city of Inkopolis.

The main plaza was bustling with activity. Inklings moved around quickly from place to place. Plenty of people were leaving the stores. Plenty of people were hanging out by benches and trees, chatting about their latest matches and purchases. Small cafés occupied the street corners. A tall, yellow tower stood at the opposite end of the plaza.

 _Wow. This place IS huge. Well, I'd best get moving. I need to find the Rainmaker Apartments as soon as I can._ He looked towards the tower. _The Turf War Lobby appears to be that way. I'll head out and see if I can find anyone who can help me._ He walked towards the lobby, carefully dodging Inklings along the way.

* * *

A/N: Hello, and welcome to my first story!

A couple of quick format notes from here on out: _Italics indicate the thoughts of the character we're following. I'll indicate in future chapters who this will be. *****_ Any text within bolded asterisks is radio chatter. ***** Yes, there will be more radio chatter in future chapters, so keep an eye out for that.

As for Ari, I'll give a quick description of what he looks like. He's a young, pale Inkling with black tentacles and blue eyes. He's wearing the Vintage Check Shirt, the Studio Headphones, and Red Work Boots. That should give you a good idea of what he looks like.

There will be swearing, violence, death, and potentially some sexual themes. I'm starting this story out under the T rating, but that may change if either the readers start getting a little uncomfortable with the content, or if I decide that the chapters start to fit the requirement of an M rating. Feel free to leave your opinions on the content in reviews, or in a PM if you prefer.

Future chapters will be longer than this one, I just wanted to get a decent exposition in for what's going on, so I hope you'll join me for Ari's adventures in Inkopolis!


	2. Chapter 2: Rainmaker Apartments

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave your luggage outside." The attendant at the front desk said, barely looking up from her computer. "Only the clothes you're wearing, and your weapon are permitted in the Turf Wars."

"Can I ask you for help really quick?" Ari replied, walking over to the desk. "I'm new to Inkopolis, and I'm a little lost."

The receptionist looked up from her computer. "Certainly! What can I help you with?"

"I'm looking for the Rainmaker Apartments. Can you give me directions there?"

The receptionist frowned. "I'm not familiar with them. I can look it up if you want." She began typing away.

"Please do. I'm not sure where I put my map." He pulled up close to the desk, making sure to keep his suitcase from blocking the path to the ink pads.

After about half a minute, the receptionist looked up. "Okay, it looks like you take a left on Kelp Street, and keep going for 2 blocks. It'll be on your right." She gave a slight smile. "Is that all I can help you with?"

Ari nodded. "Thanks for your help!" He turned around, and left.

"Wait a minute." He barely heard the receptionist say. "Something looks off about you." He took it as her musing to herself, and left without answering.

Kelp Street was three blocks away from the Turf War lobby, and Ari crossed to the other side of the street before continuing to the apartments. He noticed plenty of other Inklings staring at him as he walked around. _Gee, you'd think they had never seen a suitcase before._ He thought sarcastically. _I might have to do something about my ink color sooner rather than later if I want to fit in_.

Ari arrived at the apartments and went inside. He didn't see a clerk present, so he rang a tiny bell he saw, and sat down on a nearby chair. Another Inkling, this one a boy, was sitting nearby. His tentacles were green, and he had orange eyes. He wore a black jacket, with a bright yellow vest over top of it. He also had on matching shoes with neon green stripes as opposed to yellow. He had on an interesting pair of headphones that were conical, as opposed to the traditional circular headphones. The black and navy blue coloring reminded him of a night sky. A small microphone extended from the Inkling's right ear. _I'll have to ask him where he got the headset from, it actually looks pretty nice._

"Hello?" A voice called from the windowed desk. An adult Inkling with Green tentacles called out to the two boys. "Did someone call for help?"

"I'm waiting for someone to meet me here." The other Inkling stated, leaning back. "Go ahead." He gestured Ari to head up.

 _So much for asking about the headset._ Ari stood up. "Thanks, man." He walked over to the desk. "Hi, I'm here to ask about renting an apartment."

The attendant gave a sad smile. "I'm afraid we're all out of rentable apartments. We just rented the last one out last week. I have a couple other places I can recommend, however."

Ari felt like smacking himself on the forehead. "Oh, right. I should have phrased that better. I've rented a room, and I'm here to find out which room it is." He unzipped a pocket on the front of the suitcase, and pulled out a stapled stack of papers. "Here you go. This is my half of the paperwork. Name's Ari Inklowe."

The receptionist lit up, her hair brightening slightly as she did. "Ah, Mr. Inklowe! We were wondering when you would be here. Did the train run late?"

 _If her hair turns a brighter shade of green, I'm going to lose my eyesight._ Ari shook his head. "No ma'am, but Tentaville is a long way from Inkopolis. And there were plenty of stops on the way." _It might be better to just buy a plane ticket when I want to go home._

She took the papers, and flipped through them quickly. "All right, everything _seems_ to be in order. Here is your key," She handed him a simple metal key, "and your apartment number is going to be 1425. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Ari felt a small rumble in his stomach. _Is it that late already?_ He checked his watch. _Yep. 6:30. I should probably get something to eat._ "Are there any good places to eat around here?"

"There's a few small cafés nearby. We also have some takeout menus in one of the cabinet drawers in your kitchen. We don't have anything in the apartment building itself." She gave another bright smile. "Is there anything else I can help you with, Mr. Inklowe?"

"Just Ari is fine." _Being called 'mister' makes me feel old. I'm only 16._ "Thanks for all of your help!" Ari looked around, and saw the elevators further down a hallway. He went over and hit the up button. _Any particular reason why_ _they shaped the up and down buttons like squids?_

Ari took the elevator up and went to his room. He fumbled with the key for a few seconds before unlocking the door. The living room was the first room he stepped in. A simple grey couch sat in the center of the room, facing a decent size flat screen TV. A matching chair was off to the left side of the couch, also facing the TV. Pictures of what looked like various Turf Wars arenas were hung up on the white walls. Ari walked over to a large potted plant, interested in the greenery. He was disappointed to find that it was a plastic plant. _I'll have to ask about adding a live one. We always had some back home._

The kitchen was off to the left of the doorway. Stainless Steel appliances were neatly placed in between wooden cabinets. Pale grey counter tops were placed along the top of the cabinets on the floor. A coffee maker was placed next to the stove. Across from the kitchen was a small table and four chairs. Ari checked the cabinets, finding dishes and cups. There wasn't any food stocked, so he would have to go shopping later. Checking the fridge, he did find some Squid Colas at least. He opened a can and checked out the rest of the apartment. He saw a small hallway in between the kitchen and the living room, and walked down that next.

He opened a small door at the end of the hallway to find his bathroom. A simple sink was in front of the door, with a matching toilet next to it. The shower was next to the toilet, with a simple white curtain blocking it off. _There's no color in this place, is there? Good thing I'll be spending most of my time in the Turf Wars._ He left, and checked out a door on his right.

His bedroom was just as clean as the rest of the apartment. A full size bed sat up against the wall, with black and grey covers and pillows. The nightstand had an alarm clock shaped like a Splat Bomb. A tall lamp made out of a Splat Charger stood on the other side of the bed. A dresser stood opposite of the bed, with a small TV set up on it. He saw a closet door on the other side of the room and opened it, only to find nothing in there.

He set the soda down on the nightstand and pulled his suitcase up on the bed. _Before I put any of this away, I need to get something to eat._ He walked back over to the kitchen and found the takeout menus. _Let's see. Pasta, pasta, fast food, fast food, a third fast food. Oh, here we go: Little Shrimp's Pizza. That should do it for tonight._ He dialed the number, and placed an order for a Kelp and Shrimp pizza. Heading back to his room, he began putting clothes away.

Once he reached the bottom of the suitcase, he pulled out an N-Zap 89. It had just been legalized for Turf Wars in Tentaville a week before he moved, but he was already comfortable with the gun. Tomorrow, he would check out the Turf Wars lobby, and play a couple of matches. _I'm going to have to pay for this apartment somehow._

* * *

"Nice of you to show up." The green tentacled Inkling said as a girl with orange tentacles showed up. "I was just about to call Agent 7 instead."

She wore the Hero's Replica outfit, just like the boy she was picking up wore. "Ha ha. You would have been here until next week if you did. He hates driving people around." The two left the lobby of the apartment complex together. "So, what's our assignment this time?"

"Agents 1 and 2 want us to return to the field. Some more movement has been detected north of Octo Valley, and they want us to check it out."

The girl frowned. "Octo Valley? Again? Didn't we already determine that there was nothing there?" She opened the driver's door, and sat down in the seat. The boy got in on the opposite side, and buckled up. She started the car after putting on her seat belt.

The boy shook his head. "We're not staying in Octo Valley, Agent 4. We're going to a new place. Agent 1 referred to it as 'Octo Nevado.' And Agent 2 called her an idiot for it."

Agent 4 laughed. "They really don't change, do they?" She asked. "Well, who are we tracking this time?" She began driving, and stopped at a light up ahead.

"That's the thing. Neither Agent 1 or 2 know. The signals they're picking up aren't like any they've seen before."

Agent 4 paused. "Unknown signals?"

"Yep. I looked over the details. Definitely not one of ours. They _might_ be Octarian signals, but not any we've ever encountered." He looked over at the agent. "We've been instructed not to engage any potential hostiles unless they directly engage us. They specifically said for you not to use any 'displays of force.'"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I'll keep that in mind. Don't go running off without me in chase of an Octoling, and we won't have to worry about that, will we Agent 5?"

"Hey, she took one of my Splat Bombs. That was a prototype given to me by Agent 9."

"Well, don't let it happen again. What time do we leave?" The light turned green, and she took off from the light.

"ASAP." Agent 5 leaned back in his seat. "So, anything interesting happen to you?"

"Nope. Just a couple of shut out Turf Wars. You?"

"An Inkling with black ink moved into the apartments."

"You're joking. Inklings don't have black ink around here."

"I'm not. You missed him by a few minutes. He looked interested in our equipment, I caught him staring a little bit.

"Maybe we'll see him in a Turf War."

"I hope so. He moved fairly quickly."

"You can worry about that later. Focus on the mission for now." The two kept driving, and discussed the details of the mission.

* * *

A/N: Thank you all for the support and reviews! I'm looking forward to continuing this.


	3. Chapter 3: Forming a squad

Ari woke up slowly. _It lacks color, but man this bed is comfy._ He looked at his clock, and saw that it was 8:30. _Shoot. I never checked what time the Turf War lobby opened. Oh well; might as well get going and check it out._ He got out of bed, and took a quick shower. After he was finished he got dressed, pulling out an identical outfit to the one he wore yesterday. He picked up his N-Zap 89, and made sure to place it on a holster to the side.

Walking out into the kitchen, he saw the pizza box left out on the counter. _Crap. I should probably put the other half away._ As he slid the box back into the fridge, he began looking for food for breakfast. _Oh. Right. Grocery Shopping. I should probably do that later today; eating out all the time is a quick way to drain my bank account._ He decided against taking a soda for breakfast, instead checking his menus for any place that served breakfast. Finding none, he ultimately decided to check out the cafés near the Turf War lobby.

Stepping out of the apartments, he turned left to head back to the main street. As he walked along, he noticed more people staring at him. _Krakens above, does no one here have any manners?_ He ignored them, and kept going. Most of the small places he saw were already packed, so it was a matter of finding a place he could squeeze into. He eventually found one called Morray's Ink Pies. He stepped in, and got in line.

 _Let's see… simple eggs and toast, Jellycakes, Octo Pie… nah, that's not even a breakfast item. Maybe a BrInkfast sandwich? Krakens, that name is a horrible pun. They should copyright that soon. I'll just get a thing of Jellycakes and leave it at that._ He ordered a plate once he got to the front of the line. He walked over to the side and started scanning the crowd for a table. _Crap. All of the tables are full, and Jellycakes aren't known for being eaten with your hands. Maybe I should have got the sandwich instead._ He looked around, but only saw a couple of open chairs with other Inklings who were eating and laughing together. _Not going to impose myself upon them if I don't have to._

"Ari?" he heard a female voice ask. "Is that you?" He turned to see a yellow tentacled Inkling next to him. She was looking at him curiously.

"Isabella, right?" _I really hope that's her name._

She nodded. "Yep, that's me! Waiting on your food?"

"Yeah, and I didn't order very well. I'm hoping a place to sit opens up soon."

"Oh, don't worry about that! My friends flaked out on me today, so I have an open seat. Come on over!"

Ari smiled. _That takes care of that dilemma._ "Thanks for the offer!" Ari's order was ready, so he picked it up and walked over to the table she was sitting at.

"Geez, you have to be the only person in here to order Jellycakes after 8:00." Isabella said. "Usually it gets too crowded in here around that time to reliably find a table, making them inconvenient."

Ari shrugged. "Yeah, I was thinking more with my stomach than my head. Jellycakes are also a bit of a staple back home, so I got something I was familiar with." Ari took a bite as he finished talking. _Weird. What kind of places puts the jelly inside the pancake as they make it? It's supposed to go on top._

"So, what do you plan on doing today?" Isabella asked.

 _Man, she is really interested in what I'm doing, isn't she?_ "Probably get involved in a few Turf War matches, and then get some shopping done after that. Nothing too interesting." Ari took another bite, eating as he waited.

"I'm doing the same." She sighed and looked down at the table. "I was going to team up with my friends, but they got nervous at the last second and bailed. Do you think the people here are going to mind playing with a newbie?"

"I wouldn't mind, personally. As long as you're capable of hitting the ground, you should be alright."

Isabella looked up at Ari, her hair brightening as she did. "Really?"

Ari winced. _Gah_ , _why does everyone with bright ink coloring have to make it brighter when they're happy?_ "Yeah, pretty much. The basic Turf Wars are about how much territory each team covers. Hitting the ground, and the other team's ink, is what helps win the matches."

She rolled her eyes. "I know that, oil head! You really wouldn't mind teaming up with me?"

"No, I wouldn't, but there's a chance it won't happen." Ari was finishing up the second Jellycake.

Isabella frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Team assignments are done at random. It helps prevent people from just ganging up on someone, since they're not going to see someone for all of their matches."

"They don't have squads back where you're from?"

Ari paused. "Squads?"

"From what I've seen, people are allowed to form a group together and play in Turf Wars with that team. People have been forming groups like crazy as a result. Some people have even formed permanent teams that always play together, and are registered as such."

 _Wow. That doesn't sound like a bad idea._ "No, we didn't have Squads back home. We tend to be a little late on catching up with changes from Inkopolis." Ari paused. "Well, that's two people so far. We'll find two more in the lobby then, I guess." Ari finished up his last Jellycake.

Isabella was beaming. "Great! Let's go find two more people!" She got up, and hurried over to the door.

"Wait up!" Ari threw away his trash, and quickly moved through the crowd to catch up to her. He saw her running over to the lobby, and he rushed after her. Entering the lobby, he saw groups of all sizes hanging around, just chatting and waiting for the next arenas to open up. Isabella had found a group of two, and was talking with them. He walked over towards them.

"Yeah, I've got a partner already," He heard Isabella say. "He should be around here somewhere. Ah, there you are Ari!"

"Thanks for waiting up." He said sarcastically. Turning to the other Inklings, he asked, "Who might you two be?"

A male Inkling with Pink tentacles holding a Splatterscope, and a female Inkling with Orange tentacles holding an Inkbrush were standing together, wearing marching outfits. The Pink Inkling smiled, and reached his hand out. "I'm Jonah, and this is Emily. We're a team known as the Sneaker Siblings. We've been looking for two more to join us today."

Ari shook his hand and Emily's as well. "Pleasure to meet you. I'm sure you've met Isabella here, and I'm Ari. No team name yet, this is both of our first times battling in Inkopolis."

"You're a first time battler too?" Emily asked.

Ari shook his head. "No, just for Inkopolis. I was a part of the Tentaville league for a little while, but I've decided to move here instead."

"Black's an unusual color here in the city." Jonah asked. "Is it common in Tentaville?" Emily gave her brother a sharp glare.

"Not really." Ari replied. "Only a few families even have Black Ink in their bloodlines any more. I'm one of the few kids that had it growing up."

"Well, we need to register as a group of four at the main desk." Emily chimed in. "We should go do that now, especially since Isabella needs to have her PIC issued to her as well." She grabbed her brother by the arm, and they started walking over to the main desk. Ari chuckled, and followed them over.

"Card?" Isabella asked.

Ari pulled out a plastic card with his face and a bunch of numbers and information on it. "All Turf War leagues have Player Identification Cards, or PICs for short, that people use to track their progress. It shows their experience level, Rank if they have one, and any other relevant information to the league. Tentaville developed theirs with the standard card from Inkopolis, so mine is still valid here. New players get theirs issued to them when they apply for their first Turf War battle, and it can take a few minutes."

Ari, Jonah and Emily all registered as a team while Isabella went through the process of signing up for a card. After a five minute wait, she reappeared at the front desk and registered as the fourth member of their team. "Okay, thank you all for registering." The receptionist began. "You're in queue for the next available arena. The current Turf War arenas are Walleye Warehouse and Blackbelly Skatepark. The match at Walleye Warehouse is ending soon, so that will be your destination. Please proceed to the Ink Pipe and wait for further instructions."

"This way." Emily motioned Ari and Isabelle to follow her and Jonah to a Respawn point off to the left.

"All fighters participating in the next match, please stand on the Respawn point. Make sure your weapons are attached to your Ink Tanks, and prepare for your battle." Emily and Jonah stood on a Lime Green Respawn point, and Ari followed them. He made sure his N-Zap was hooked up, and looked to see if Isabella was ready to go. Her Splattershot Jr. was already hooked up to her tank, so Ari waited for more instructions.

"All fighters, please turn into swimming form, and follow your Pipe to the arena."

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the wait! My work schedule isn't very forgiving for regular projects like this one, so my updates will be somewhat random. I'm going to have at least 1 chapter a month, with a goal of at least 1 a week, barring any unusual circumstances. I'm sorry for not having a consistent schedule, but that's the best I can offer.

Please keep reviews coming, it does help me know what areas I can improve. Thanks for returning!


End file.
